Projo 7 to 7 News Blog

This year's schedule of high school football rivalry games begins in about an hour, when Hope and Central meet at Providence's Conley Stadium in the first game of a city double-header. There are five other games on tonight's high school schedule, and 15 games set for tomorrow morning around Rhode Island. Click here to see tonight's games, and here to see tomorrow's games, and here to vote for the winners.

We'll have photo galleries later tonight from the intra-Warwick matchup between Toll Gate and Hendricken, as well as the intra-Pawtucket game pitting Tolman against Shea.

Tomorrow, we're planning photo coverage of La Salle-East Providence, Cranston East-Cranston West, North Kingstown-South Kingstown and Pilgrim-Warwick Vets, as well as a video from the Tiverton-Central Falls game. It will all be posted, along with complete results and game summaries, throughout the evening tomorrow.

Online now, you can read a couple of interesting Thanksgiving football stories from John Gillooly: one about Hope center/linebacker Shea Deignan's unlikely path to stardom, and another about a relatively new Thanksgiving rivalry between Exeter/West Greenwich and Chariho.

Gritty Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia has been named Most Valuable Player of the American League for 2008. Pedroia is the 10th Red Sox player to win the award since 1931, and the first since Mo Vaughn in 1995.

Pedroia got 16 of the 28 first-place votes and easily beat out Minnesota slugger Justin Morneau. Pedroia's teammate Kevin Youkilis finished third.

The award is an amazing accomplishment for the 25-year-old Pedroia, who played his second full season with the Red Sox in 2008. After all, he struggled so badly through his first two months as a major leaguer (at the end of 2006 and the beginning of 2007) that many observers, turned off by his small stature and big swing, thought he would never amount to much. But the 5-9, 180-pound Pedroia turned things around in a big way in 2007, going on to win the American League Rookie of the Year award, batting .317 on the season.

In 2008, he was even better. He finished with a .326 batting average (second in the league), 17 home runs, 118 runs scored (first in the league) and 83 RBI. He stole 20 bases -- compared with seven in 2007 -- while being caught stealing just once. And he was the only member of the 2008 Red Sox to win a Gold Glove.

Pedroia becomes the third player in either league to win Rookie of the Year and MVP awards in consecutive seasons. Philadelphia's Ryan Howard did it in 2005 and 2006, while Baltimore's Cal Ripken Jr. did it in 1982 and 1983. Two players -- Fred Lynn of the Red Sox in 1975 and Ichiro Suzuki of the Mariners in 2001 -- won both awards in the same season.

Pedroia is also the first American League second baseman to win the MVP award since Nellie Fox of the White Sox in 1959.

Pedroia will have a conference call with the media at 3, and we'll have news from that event this afternoon on our projo SoxBlog. For now, you can read why sports writer Joe McDonald feels that Pedroia is a deserving candidate, see a gallery of photos from Pedroia's 2008 season, and tell us if Pedroia would have gotten your vote.

University of Rhode Island head basketball coach Jim Baron is now taking questions during a live chat on projo.com, as his team prepares to open its regular season.

Click here to submit questions between noon and 1 p.m. or just tune in to read the conversation.. Then, click "launch chat," choose a display name (you do not need a password) and enter the "college hoops" chat room. From there, you can follow the directions for submitting a question.

For the first time in 14 years, the Boston Red Sox are freezing prices on tickets for all pre-existing seats and standing-room space at Fenway Park. The team will also freeze ticket prices for spring-training games in Fort Myers, Fla.

"We have been listening to fans, friends, and family about the challenges they are facing in light of the current adverse economic conditions," said Larry Lucchino, Red Sox president/CEO, in a story on the team web site. "We are also grateful for the unwavering faith and support our fans have shown us year after year and we hope our ownership's decision to hold prices for the upcoming season will in some way help ease the burden on Red Sox Nation."

The last time the Red Sox froze ticket prices across the board was 1995, following a player strike that ended the 1994 season without a World Series and left the game in a severe state of crisis.

Playing in the smallest park in baseball and riding the longest consecutive sellout streak in baseball history, the Red Sox in 2008 had the highest average ticket price -- $48.80 -- in the major leagues.

Special discount programs for active duty military and clergy will continue in 2009, while premium seat contractual ticketholders may freeze their ticket prices at 2008 levels if they extend their contracts for an additional season.

Journal photo / M. Charles Bakst
In a scene reminiscent of political conventions, balloons drop on attendees of a of the newly renovated Dunkin' Donuts Center in Providence. Click here to see a video tour of the changes.

By KEVIN McNAMARA
Journal Sports Writer

PROVIDENCE - An array of Rhode Island political leaders have just christened the newly renovated Dunkin' Donuts Center.

A three-year, $80-million renovation of the building is finally over, and the dignitaries on hand today were clearly excited about the finished product.

"Does this look beautiful or what," said Governor Carcieri, just back from the National Republican Convention at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minn. "This is a great example of what can get done and what is good about our little state."

Rhode Island Convention Center Authority chairman David Duffy said he expects the building known as "the Dunk" and Convention Center to be able to attract several high-profile sporting events in the coming years. The first is already booked when the NCAA basketball tournament returns to Providence in 2010.

"A strong, mid-market city like Providence wouldn't be the same without a building like this," Duffy said.

The building's first event will be an All-access Open House on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The building will be open, free of charge, for customers who can tour through the Providence College basketball and Providence Bruins locker rooms, see the luxury suites, walk on the PC hoop floor, sit in the brand-new cushioned seats and take part in interactive games and contests.

On Sunday night, the American Idols Live Tour comes to the Dunk on Sunday night.

The high school football season begins soon, and John Gillooly is ready to answer your questions about what to expect in the coming months. Join John for a live web chat from 7 to 8 tonight. You can send in your questions in advance: Go to projo.com/chat, click the red "launch chat" button, choose a display name (you don't need a password), enter the high school football chat room and follow the instructions.

Providence welterweight Demetrius Andrade predicted a big victory today, and he just delivered, taking it to Russia's Andrey Balanov for a 14-3 decision. The 2007 world champion now advances to the quarterfinals, where he will face three-time Olympian Jungjoo Kim of South Korea, who easily dispatched the U.S. Virgin Islands' John Jackson this morning.

Today's win by Andrade was much more dominant than his round-of-32 victory against Georgia's Kakhaber Jvania.

Andrade's welterweight quarterfinal will be at 7:46 Sunday morning here in the United States.

AP photo / David J. Phillip
Elizabeth Beisel, right, and fellow American Margaret Hoelzer celebrate today after both swimmers ensured their places in the semifinals of the 200-meter backstroke.

North Kingstown's Elizabeth Beisel has completed her preliminary heat of the 200-meter backstroke with a time of 2:09.02, the sixth-best time out of 34 swimmers competing in the round.

Beisel now advances to the semifinal round of the 200m backstroke, tonight at 10:32.

She finished 2.26 seconds off the pace of first-place Kirsty Coventry, from Zimbabwe.

Beisel had a strong finish after finding herself in seventh place out of eight swimmers in her heat at the close of the first 100 meters. She moved all the way to second place between 100 to 150 meters, and remained second in the heat, behind Great Britain's Elizabeth Simmonds. who led the entire way.

Beisel's splits: 31.57, 1:04.64, 1:36.91, 2:09.02

Journal photo / Mary Murphy

The defending AFC champion New England Patriots (still stings to write 'AFC' in place of 'NFL') get their exhibition season started tonight against the Baltimore Ravens at Gillette Stadium.

The team, anticipating heavy traffic for the prime-time matchup, yesterday issued an advisory urging fans to allow plenty of extra time for their commute to the stadium.

The parking lots at Gillette will open at 3:30 p.m., the stadium gates will open at 5:30, and kickoff will be around 7:30. Click here to see the official Gillette Stadium parking guide.

If you have tickets to the game and would like to take public transportation to the stadium, a commuter rail train will leave Providence at 5:20 this afternoon and arrive at the stadium at 6:10. Trains will depart 30 minutes after the completion of the game; the round-trip fare is $12.

If you're planning on watching the game on television, you can tune to Channel 12 in Providence; or Channel 5 in Boston. It will also be on 99.7 FM radio and 790 AM.

Click here to see the weather forecast for Foxboro -- looks like it could be a wet one.

Our own Shalise Manza Young will have blog reports from Gillette Stadium later this afternoon; you can find them at projosports.com/patsblog. And tomorrow, we'll have a gallery of photos from Ruben W. Perez and Mary Murphy at projosports.com/patriots.

According to multiple sources, including SI.com and The Boston Globe, Manny Ramirez has been traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers in a three-way deal that will send the Pittsburgh Pirates' Jason Bay to Boston. We'll have more on this story later today from Sean McAdam.

Fox Sports is reporting that the Red Sox have not only sent Ramirez to the Dodgers and agreed to pay all of the salary due to him, but they have also given relief pitcher Craig Hansen and outifielder Brandon Moss to the Pirates, while Pittsburgh also gets two other players, Andy LaRoche and Bryan Morris, from the Dodgers.

PITTSBURGH (AP) - Two West Virginia University basketball players, including Hendricken graduate Joe Mazzulla, were charged with scuffling with police and underage drinking after a fight at a Pittsburgh Pirates game.

Mazzulla and Cameron Thoroughman were arrested Monday at PNC Park, where the Pirates were playing the Colorado Rockies. The two were in custody and awaiting arraignment Tuesday.

Mazzulla, a 6-2 junior from Johnston, was charged with aggravated assault, hindering apprehension and underage drinking. Thoroughman, a 6-foot-7 sophomore from Portsmouth, Ohio, was charged with disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and underage drinking.

The school's athletic department said it would have a statement later Tuesday.

The 20-year-old players began arguing with police when they refused a request for identification, according to a criminal complaint. The officers said the two smelled of alcohol.

Thoroughman said he did not have ID, according to the report. Police said he lied about his age and threatened a security guard. Police said officers brought Thoroughman to the ground when he refused to put his arms behind his back. While Thoroughman was struggling with the officer, Mazzulla tried to grab his teammate and punched a police sergeant.

Journal photo / Gretchen Ertl
Linebacker Tedy Bruschi talks to the media after this morning's training camp session, the first of the preseason for the New England Patriots. Click here to see a gallery of photos from the morning's session. Weather forced this morning's session indoors and kept the fans away. The Patriots will have another session -- which is expected to also be indoors -- later this afternoon. Tomorrow at 2:30 p.m., afternoon practice should be open to the public. Find more on Patriots training camp on our PatsBlog.

The Patriots have just announced that due to the weather and field conditions, today's training camp sessions have been moved indoors and thus are not open to the public. Today is the first day of camp for the defending AFC champions. Check Patriots.com for updates, and projosports.com/patsblog for Shalise Manza Young's reports later today from Foxboro.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- The New Orleans Hornets have signed free agent forward James Posey.

Posey's agent, Mark Bartelstein, says Posey, who played last season for the Boston Celtics, has agreed to a four-year contract worth $25 million.

The Celtics had considered Posey to be their top offseason priority.

For more on this story later today, go to projosports.com.

Click here to see the full transcript of our interview Saturday afternoon with Olympic swimmer Elizabeth Beisel, of North Kingstown, who is in California training for Beijing. You'll also find a link to the audio of the interview.

Beisel says that what she has accomplished still has not really hit home, except that she now has a tremendous opportunity to be around the very best in her sport day in and day out. She also talked about how she managed to cut nearly 16 seconds off her 400 individual medley time from last year's World Junior Championships to this year's U.S. Olympic Trials; what it is like to swim in the high-tech, NASA-designed Speedo swimsuits; how she handles the enormous pressure of competing on such a big stage; and why she feels extremely proud to represent Rhode Island.

Tonight at 6, we continue our coverage of spring All-States by unveiling the 2008 Providence Journal HSGameTime All-State boys outdoor track team. You can find the first-team and second-team All-State listings as well as All-Division and All-Class teams, at HSGameTime.

Here is the online schedule for spring All-States. The new teams will be announced at 6 p.m. each day.

Online now: Boys tennis, golf, boys volleyball, softball, girls lacrosse, boys lacrosse, girls outdoor track
Tonight: Boys outdoor track
Tomorrow: Independent stars
Saturday: Baseball

Tonight at 6, we continue our coverage of spring All-States by unveiling the 2008 Providence Journal HSGameTime All-State girls outdoor track team. You can find the first-team and second-team All-State listings as well as All-Division and All-Class teams, at HSGameTime. Right now, you can get watch and listen to a multimedia interview with Classical track stars Victoria Flowers and Patrick Onye.

Here is the online schedule for spring All-States. The new teams will be announced at 6 p.m. each day.

Online now: Boys tennis, golf, boys volleyball, softball, girls lacrosse, boys lacrosse
Tonight: Girls outdoor track
Tomorrow: Boys outdoor track
Friday: Independent stars
Saturday: Baseball

BARRINGTON -- The patience of CVS Classic organizers apparently is going to pay off with more golf.

It has just been announced that the four teams tied at 15-under-par through 28 holes will hold a three-hole playoff, beginning at 4:05 p.m., for the title. It will be telecast live by The Golf Channel.

Play has been delayed since 12:10 p.m. because of a major electrical storm. The Rhode Island Country Club course is still waterlogged, but what apparently is the last of the rain is now falling, thus the playoff has been set.

It was determined to use 28 holes as the measuring stick for each team's finish since all teams played at least 28 holes. That means the teams of Billy Andrade-Davis Love, Rocco Mediate-Brandt Snedeker, Paul Goydos-TIm Herron and Bubba Watson-Camilo Villegas will be in the playoff.

Two other teams also were at 15-under when play was halted, the duos of Dana and Brett Quigley and Nick Price-Charles Howell. However, those teams had played more than 28 holes to get to 15-under. Howell and Price were 14-under through 28 holes and the Quigleys at 13-under.

Check a live scoreboard on the CVS Caremark Charity Classic Web site.

-Sports Writer Paul Kenyon

Journal photo / Bob Breidenbach
Spectators clear the course at the Rhode Island Country Club as rain arrives at the CVS Caremark Charity Classic today.

BARRINGTON -- Give the organizers of the CVS Caremark Charity Classic an ``A’’ for determination. And the players, too.

As of 2:15 p.m., the tournament remains in delay. A powerful storm has blown through, flooding much of the course as it brought hail, thunder and lightning. Play was halted at 12:10 and the storm arrived about 12:40. It lasted for about an hour.

``It was hailing on the 18th fairway,'' said Darren Lee, who was in the Edwards & Angell suite on the 18th. ``It looked like golf balls were falling from the sky.'' Some of the suites had damage to their roof. The wine pavilion apparently did not survive. It was taken down by the storm.

Many of the fairways were flooded. Weather reports indicate one more storm cell could be on its way soon. Despite all that, hope remains that play will resume.

Peter Jacobsen, whose production company organizes the event, just spoke with reporters and said everything is on hold for the time being.

``Everyone’s been great. They’re all willing to stay,’’ Jacobsen said of the 20 competitors.

Many of the players have flights scheduled today. The only one with a major problem is Justin Rose, who has a commercial flight to Scotland scheduled for 4 p.m.

During the storm, spectators were allowed to go to the clubhouse, Champions Club and suites along the 18th hole, all areas normally reserved for sponsors. At least from what has been seen around the clubhouse, few people got caught in the storm. Buses became a shelter more than a source of transportation. There was one report that lightning had hit a building at St. Andrew’s School, where some of the parking is for the tournament.

Through it all, the players have cooperated fully, Jacobsen said.

``I think one reason they want to stay is because they have this ice cream bar up there (in the players area),’’ Jacobsen related. ``They have vanilla and chocolate and oreo and heath bar. They’re saying they’re doing fine there.’’

``Our first priority is to finish out the tournament and all 20 professional are on-site and available to do so,'' CVS officials said in a statement. ``If a complete finish is not an option our next step would be to initiate a playoff between the four teams tied for the lead through 28 total holes.''

-Sports Writer Paul Kenyon

Tonight at 6, we continue our coverage of spring All-States by unveiling the 2008 Providence Journal HSGameTime All-State boys lacrosse team. You can find the first-team and second-team All-State listings as well as All-Division and SENE All-League teams, at HSGameTime.

Here is the online schedule for spring All-States. The new teams will be announced at 6 p.m. each day.

Online now: Boys tennis, golf, boys volleyball, softball, girls lacrosse
Today: Boys lacrosse
Tomorrow: Girls outdoor track
Thursday: Boys outdoor track
Friday: Independent stars
Saturday: Baseball

Tonight at 6, we continue our coverage of spring All-States by unveiling the 2008 Providence Journal HSGameTime All-State girls lacrosse team. You can find the first-team and second-team All-State listings as well as All-Division and All-Academic teams, at HSGameTime. Right now, you can get watch and listen to a multimedia interview with All-State Chloe Schmitz, from the Division I champion Moses Brown team.

Here is the online schedule for spring All-States. The new teams will be announced at 6 p.m. each day.

Online now: Boys tennis, golf, boys volleyball, softball
Today: Girls lacrosse
Tomorrow: Boys lacrosse
Wednesday: Girls outdoor track
Thursday: Boys outdoor track
Friday: Independent stars
Saturday: Baseball

Bryant University today announced that former URI assistant and Ohio University head coach Tim O'Shea is the new head coach of its men's basketball program. O'Shea succeeds Max Good, who has left Bryant to take the head coaching job at Loyola Marymount in Los Angeles. Bill Reynolds was at the news conference, and we'll have more from him later today.

Here's a link to the Bryant news release announcing O'Shea's hiring.

And here's the link to Kevin McNamara's story last week, which anticipated the choice of O'Shea.

Tonight at 6, we continue our coverage of spring All-States by unveiling the 2008 Providence Journal HSGameTime All-State boys volleyball team. You can find the first-team and second-team All-State listings as well as All-Division and All-Tournament teams, at HSGameTime. Right now, you can get watch and listen to a multimedia interview with All-State James Boyce, from the Division I champion East Providence team.

Here is the online schedule for spring All-States. The new teams will be announced at 6 p.m. each day.

Online now: Boys tennis, golf
Today: Boys volleyball
Tomorrow: Softball
Monday: Girls lacrosse
Tuesday: Boys lacrosse
Wednesday: Girls outdoor track
Thursday: Boys outdoor track
Friday, June 27: Independent stars
Saturday, June 28: Baseball

BOSTON (AP) - Curt Schilling says he's out for the season, and his career may be over.

The Red Sox right-hander said Friday morning he will undergo surgery next week on his injured shoulder. When asked on the WEEI "Dennis and Callahan Show" whether that will end his season, he said "Yes."

"My season is over and there is a pretty decent chance I have thrown my last pitch forever," he said.

Schilling's physician, Dr. Craig Morgan, confirmed to The Associated Press the surgery would be at his office in Wilmington, Del., on Monday afternoon.

"If you use a scale of 1-10 and 10 is pitching in the big leagues, I'm at about 3 right now," Schilling said.

He added: "I'm going in to make it not hurt anymore."

Early in spring training, Schilling's course of treatment became a sort of melodrama.

Red Sox team physician Dr. Thomas Gill recommended rehab for a tendon injury. Schilling sought a second opinion Morgan, who operated on the right shoulder in 1995 and 1999. Morgan felt strongly that surgery was best and that rehabilitation would fail - and potentially end Schilling's career.

Morgan said Friday that Schilling's shoulder is stronger than it was in spring training when he originally recommended surgery. But the original problem with the tendon persists. He said Schilling could throw off flat ground, but that not from the mound.

The 41-year-old Schilling, who's been out since the start of spring training, underwent an MRI Tuesday and after conferring with Morgan and Gill, a decision was made to do the surgery.
Up until a couple weeks ago, Schilling had still planned to stick with rehab.

"We had a rough couple of weeks, so a lot of stuff happened over the last couple of days," Schilling said. "I met with Dr. Morgan ... and Dr. Gill. It got to a point we had to make some decisions."

A team spokesman did not immediately return a call for comment.

Tonight at 6, we continue our coverage of spring All-States by unveiling the 2008 Providence Journal HSGameTime All-State golf team. You can find the first-team and second-team All-State listings as well as All-Division and the SENE All-League team at HSGameTime. Right now, you can get watch and listen to a multimedia interview with girls golf champion Samantha Morrell, from North Kingstown High School.

Here is the online schedule for spring All-States. The new teams will be announced at 6 p.m. each day.

Online now: Boys tennis
Today: Golf
Tomorrow: Boys volleyball
Saturday: Softball
Monday: Girls lacrosse
Tuesday: Boys lacrosse
Wednesday: Girls outdoor track
Thursday, June 26: Boys outdoor track
Friday, June 27: Independent stars
Saturday, June 28: Baseball

Tonight at 6, we begin our coverage of spring All-States by unveiling the 2008 Providence Journal HSGameTime All-State boys tennis team. You can find the first-team and second-team All-State listings as well as All-Division, Scholarship Awards and the SENE co-ed team at HSGameTime. Right now, you can get watch and listen to a multimedia interview with state tennis champion Kyle Burke, from South Kingstown High School.

Here is the online schedule for spring All-States. The new teams will be announced at 6 p.m. each day.

Today: Boys tennis
Tomorrow: Golf
Friday: Boys volleyball
Saturday: Softball
Monday: Girls lacrosse
Tuesday: Boys lacrosse
Wednesday, June 25: Girls outdoor track
Thursday, June 26: Boys outdoor track
Friday, June 27: Independent stars
Saturday, June 28: Baseball

Rocco Mediate, who took Tiger Woods to a dramatic sudden-death finish in the U.S. Open this past weekend, has been added to the field at the CVS Caremark Charity Classic, June 22 to 24 in Barrington.

Mediate will replace Boo Weekley, who has withdrawn for personal reasons. His teammate for the event will be Brandt Snedeker.

Mediate is no stranger to the CVS tourney.

In fact, he's won it before, in 2003, playing with Jeff Sluman.

He's also played in the classic in 2002 and 2004.

See who else is playing this year.

More to come ...

-- With reports from Journal sports writer Paul Kenyon

BOSTON (AP) - For the second time in a year, the streets of Boston will be turned into a mobile party.

Boston Mayor Tom Menino told WBZ-AM on Wednesday that a "rolling rally" to honor the NBA champion Boston Celtics will be held at 11 a.m. on Thursday.

The rally is expected to start at the TD Banknorth Garden. where the Celtics clinched their 17th crown on Tuesday night with a 131-92 win over the Los Angeles Lakers.

The city has held the "rolling rallies" on World War II-era amphibious vehicles to celebrate championships from the New England Patriots and Boston Red Sox.

The last one was on Oct. 30, after the Red Sox completed a four-game sweep of the Colorado Rockies in the World Series.

Journal photo / Bob Breidenbach
State golf champion Juliet Vongphoumy gets a hug from her mother, Khingthong Vongphoumy, as her fater, Sinpaseuth Vongphoumy, looks on today.

By JOHN GILLOOLY
Journal Sports Writer

CRANSTON - Juliet Vongphoumy became the first girl to win the Rhode Island Interscholastic League co-ed individual golf title as the La Salle freshman, playing from the women's tees, posted a final-round 77 today at the Cranston Country Club and captured the title in the 36-hole state tournament.

Vongphoumy's six-over performance, combined with an even-par 71 yesterday, gave her a 36-hole total of 148 and a two-stroke margin of victory over runner-up Justin Misiaszek of Burrillville.

In tomorrow's Journal and online at HSGameTime.com, Jim Donaldson will have a profile of Vongphoumy and her unusual road to the top of the state high school golf scene.

Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., is speaking now in Washington, D.C. He has already called for an independent review of the Spygate matter, something along the lines of the Mitchell investigation into steroids in baseball. He says the NFL's investigation of the matter has "strained credulity" in certain respects, including the presence yesterday of a Patriots lawyer during the interview by Commissioner Roger Goodell of Matt Walsh. Specter says he has never heard of an investigation during which a lawyer for the subject of the investigation was present during the questioning of witnesses.

More to come...